High-performance Anion-exchange Chromatography-pulsed Amperometric Detection Research Articles

Molecular characterization of a galactomannan extracted from Tara (Caesalpinia spinosa) seeds

Tara gum (TG) is a polysaccharide extracted from the seeds of a South American tree called Tara (Caesalpinia spinosa). TG is a galactomannan with many applications in the food industry, mainly as an emulsifier and stabilizer agent. In addition, it is also used in the paper and cosmetic industries. In the present study, we performed a molecular characterization based on chemical composition and physicochemical properties to understand the properties behind TG applications. TG was extracted and purified from Tara seeds distributed in different ecoregions of Bolivia. The monosaccharide composition analysis was determined by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography/pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD). At the same time, their molecular characteristics, such as molar mass, root-mean-square radius, hydrodynamic radius, conformation, and densities, were studied by asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation coupled to multi-angle light scattering refractive index (AF4-MALS-dRI), also the specific refractive index increment (dn/dc) was determined for the first time using AF4 for TG. The results revealed that the gum samples are galactomannans composed of mannose (Man) and galactose (Gal) in a ratio of 3.37 (Man/Gal), with an average molar mass range from 2.460 × 107 to 3.699 × 107 Da, distributed in a single population. The root-mean-square radius range from 260.4 to 281.6 nm, and dn/dc is 0.1454. The Kratky plots based on 14 scattering angles indicated that the conformation of all samples corresponds to random coil monodisperse, while their gyration radius/hydrodynamic radius ratio (ρ) is high. All these results suggest that the chains have a low branched density, consistent with the Gal/Man composition. To the best of our knowledge, we report for the first time an integrated physicochemical study of TG relevant to developing emulsifier and stabilizer formulations.

Comprehensive oligosaccharide profiling of commercial almond milk, soy milk, and soy flour

Oligosaccharides are known for several bioactivities on health, however, in sensitive individuals, can cause intestinal discomfort. This study aimed to investigate the oligosaccharide profiles in selected plant-based food products. A quantification method based on high-performance anion-exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection was developed, validated, and used to measure major oligosaccharides. Additional low-abundant oligosaccharides and glycosides were characterized by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and glycosidases. The summed concentration of raffinose, stachyose, and verbascose ranged from 0.12–0.19 mg/g in almond milk, 3.6–6.4 mg/g in soy milk, and 74–77 and 4.8–57 mg/g in defatted and full-fat soy four. Over 80 different oligosaccharides were characterized. Novel compounds, 2,3-butanediol glycosides, were identified in almond milk. Low-abundant oligosaccharides represented 25 %, 6 %, and 10 % of total OS in almond milk, soy milk, and soy flour, respectively. The data here are useful to estimate oligosaccharide consumption from dietary intake and facilitate further studies on their bioactivity.

Valorisation Potential of Invasive Acacia dealbata, A. longifolia and A. melanoxylon from Land Clearings.

Acacia spp. are invasive in Southern Europe, and their high propagation rates produce excessive biomass, exacerbating wildfire risk. However, lignocellulosic biomass from Acacia spp. may be utilised for diverse biorefinery applications. In this study, attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR), high-performance anion-exchange chromatography pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) and lignin content determinations were used for a comparative compositional characterisation of A. dealbata, A. longifolia and A. melanoxylon. Additionally, biomass was treated with three white-rot fungi species (Ganoderma lucidum, Pleurotus ostreatus and Trametes versicolor), which preferentially degrade lignin. Our results showed that the pre-treatments do not significantly alter neutral sugar composition while reducing lignin content. Sugar release from enzymatic saccharification was enhanced, in some cases possibly due to a synergy between white-rot fungi and mild alkali pretreatments. For example, in A. dealbata stems treated with alkali and P. ostreatus, saccharification yield was 702.3 nmol mg−1, which is higher than the samples treated only with alkali (608.1 nmol mg−1), and 2.9-fold higher than the non-pretreated controls (243.9 nmol mg−1). By characterising biomass and pretreatments, generated data creates value for unused biomass resources, contributing to the implementation of sustainable biorefining systems. In due course, the generated value will lead to economic incentives for landowners to cut back invasive Acacia spp. more frequently, thus reducing excess biomass, which exacerbates wildfire risk.

Combining HPAEC-PAD, PGC-LC-MS, and 1D 1H NMR to Investigate Metabolic Fates of Human Milk Oligosaccharides in 1-Month-Old Infants: a Pilot Study.

A solid-phase extraction procedure was optimized to extract 3-fucosyllactose and other human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) from human milk samples separately, followed by absolute quantitation using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection and porous graphitized carbon-liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry, respectively. The approach developed was applied on a pilot sample set of 20 human milk samples and paired infant feces collected at around 1 month postpartum. One-dimensional 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was employed on the same samples to determine the relative levels of fucosylated epitopes and sialylated (Neu5Ac) structural elements. Based on different HMO consumption patterns in the gastrointestinal tract, the infants were assigned to three clusters as follows: complete consumption; specific consumption of non-fucosylated HMOs; and, considerable levels of HMOs still present with consumption showing no specific preference. The consumption of HMOs by infant microbiota also showed structure specificity, with HMO core structures and Neu5Ac(α2-3)-decorated HMOs being most prone to degradation. The degree and position of fucosylation impacted HMO metabolization differently.

Construction of fungi-microalgae symbiotic system and adsorption study of heavy metal ions

Harvesting and immobilization are problem in microalgae water treatment. Here, mycelial pellets (Aspergillus fumigatus) and Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 comprised a fungi-microalgae symbiotic system (FMSS) of hypha-pellet flocculant auxiliary microalgae solidification. Optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that green particles were attached to fungal mycelia. A 98% adsorption and immobilization efficiency of mycelium pellets to microalgae was evident. Under the condition of 108 cells/mL logarithmic phase microalgae and no fungal culture medium, the symbiotic system had higher stability and better Cd(II) adsorption efficiency (98.89%, 37.3 mg g−1). Meanwhile, the symbiotic system prolonged the growth cycle of microalgae in the adsorption. After Cd(II) ion stimulation, the content of total extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) in the FMSS was significantly higher than that in the control group, and the change of extracellular polysaccharide was more obvious. High performance anion exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) showed that the monosaccharide composition of extracellular polysaccharides increased. Three dimensional excitation emission matrix (3D-EEM) spectrum analysis showed the peak intensity of protein fluorescence changed with the treatment of heavy metals. FTIR spectra showed that the functional groups (such as OH, CONH) of EPS participated in the adsorption process. The findings showed that the key components of EPS, extracellular polysaccharides and extracellular proteins, played an important role in the symbiotic system to cope with the stress of heavy metal and resist the toxicity of heavy metal. The preliminary data can inform development and utilization of engineering strains and gene transformation.

Isolation of Low Molecular Weight Carbohydrates from Seeds of SyzygiumCuminiandan Investigation into their Prebiotic Properties

Syzygium cumini(L.) Skeels (jamun) is a medically important fruit with numerous health protective effects. Seeds of this fruit contain 74.5 % NFE (nitrogen free extracts) and therefore possess a good source of carbohydrates. This fraction consists of high molecular weight carbohydrates (HMWC) like inulin (41.1 %) and resistant starch (3.9 mg/L); and hitherto unquantified low molecular weight carbohydrates (LMWC). This study was performed to extract and quantify LMWC from jamun seeds. To extract LMWC, ethanol concentration, extraction time and solute particle size were evaluated in 21 experimental designs using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) based on the central composite rotatable design (CCRD). A quadratic polynomial equation was obtained by multiple regression analysis. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) tested significance of the factors and their interactions at 95 % confidence interval. High Performance Anion Exchange Chromatography – Pulsed Amperometric Detection (HPAEC-PAD) was used to characterize the prebiotic fraction into individual sugars. Prebiotic potential of LMWC was established by calculating the Prebiotic Activity Score (PAS). A maximum LMWC yield (21 g / 100 g) was obtained when extraction was performed with 50 % ethanol as solvent for 80 to 85 h using the seed powder with 0.6 mm particle size. The predicted yield was in agreement with the experimental value and therefore proved the suitability of the RSM model. This model could be used as a standard for scaling up LMWC extraction from jamun seeds. A positive PAS of 1.532 ± 0.008 ascertained the prebiotic efficacy of the LMWC extracts. This score reflected the ability of probiotics like Lactobacillus acidophilus to gainfully utilize the LMWC in the growth medium in comparison to pathogenic strains like Escherichia coli.

Comparison of macronutrient content in human milk measured by mid-infrared human milk analyzer and reference methods

ObjectiveThe study aims at evaluating mid-infrared human milk analyzer (HMA) accuracy and precision, in human milk (HM).Study designRöse-Gottlieb, high-performance anion exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD), Kjeldahl and amino acid analysis (AA) were selected as references for total fat, lactose and total protein determination.ResultsNo significant difference was observed in lactose content between HMA and HPAEC-PAD. Significant differences were observed in fat and protein content between HMA and reference methods. However, the difference in fat content was lower than 12%, and therefore within the variability declared by supplier. For protein determination, the BCA protein assay was selected. No significant differences were observed in total protein content measured by BCA assay, Kjeldahl and AA methods.ConclusionsHMA was reliable for the quantification of total fat and lactose content, but not for total protein one. The latter was measured by BCA assay, which yielded comparable results to Kjeldahl and AA methods.

A Lytic Polysaccharide Monooxygenase with Broad Xyloglucan Specificity from the Brown-Rot Fungus Gloeophyllum trabeum and Its Action on Cellulose-Xyloglucan Complexes

ABSTRACTFungi secrete a set of glycoside hydrolases and lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) to degrade plant polysaccharides. Brown-rot fungi, such as Gloeophyllum trabeum, tend to have few LPMOs, and information on these enzymes is scarce. The genome of G. trabeum encodes four auxiliary activity 9 (AA9) LPMOs (GtLPMO9s), whose coding sequences were amplified from cDNA. Due to alternative splicing, two variants of GtLPMO9A seem to be produced, a single-domain variant, GtLPMO9A-1, and a longer variant, GtLPMO9A-2, which contains a C-terminal domain comprising approximately 55 residues without a predicted function. We have overexpressed the phylogenetically distinct GtLPMO9A-2 in Pichia pastoris and investigated its properties. Standard analyses using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography–pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) and mass spectrometry (MS) showed that GtLPMO9A-2 is active on cellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose, and xyloglucan. Importantly, compared to other known xyloglucan-active LPMOs, GtLPMO9A-2 has broad specificity, cleaving at any position along the β-glucan backbone of xyloglucan, regardless of substitutions. Using dynamic viscosity measurements to compare the hemicellulolytic action of GtLPMO9A-2 to that of a well-characterized hemicellulolytic LPMO, NcLPMO9C from Neurospora crassa revealed that GtLPMO9A-2 is more efficient in depolymerizing xyloglucan. These measurements also revealed minor activity on glucomannan that could not be detected by the analysis of soluble products by HPAEC-PAD and MS and that was lower than the activity of NcLPMO9C. Experiments with copolymeric substrates showed an inhibitory effect of hemicellulose coating on cellulolytic LPMO activity and did not reveal additional activities of GtLPMO9A-2. These results provide insight into the LPMO potential of G. trabeum and provide a novel sensitive method, a measurement of dynamic viscosity, for monitoring LPMO activity.IMPORTANCE Currently, there are only a few methods available to analyze end products of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenase (LPMO) activity, the most common ones being liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Here, we present an alternative and sensitive method based on measurement of dynamic viscosity for real-time continuous monitoring of LPMO activity in the presence of water-soluble hemicelluloses, such as xyloglucan. We have used both these novel and existing analytical methods to characterize a xyloglucan-active LPMO from a brown-rot fungus. This enzyme, GtLPMO9A-2, differs from previously characterized LPMOs in having broad substrate specificity, enabling almost random cleavage of the xyloglucan backbone. GtLPMO9A-2 acts preferentially on free xyloglucan, suggesting a preference for xyloglucan chains that tether cellulose fibers together. The xyloglucan-degrading potential of GtLPMO9A-2 suggests a role in decreasing wood strength at the initial stage of brown rot through degradation of the primary cell wall.

Anticancer Activity of Sulfated Polysaccharides Isolated from the Antarctic Red Seaweed Iridaea cordata

This study aimed to isolate and characterize sulfated polysaccharides (SPs) from Iridaea cordata and evaluate their anticancer activity. SPs of the Antarctic red seaweed were obtained by CaCl₂ (SP1) and ethanol precipitations (SP2) following diluted acid extraction at room temperature. Yields of SP1 and SP2 were approximately 14% and 23%, respectively, of the dry weight of red seaweed. The average molecular mass of the SP1 and SP2 was estimated about 1.84 × 10³ and 1.42 × 10³ kDa, respectively, by size-fractionation High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). From the High-Performance Anion-Exchange Chromatography-Pulsed Amperometric Detection (HPAEC-PAD) analysis, the main monosaccharide was galactose with glucose and fucose as minor components. The sulfate content of SP2 (40.4%) was slightly higher than that of SP1 (33.8%). The FT-IR spectra also showed characteristic band of carrageenan-like sulfated polysaccharides. Taken together the SPs are thought to be carrageenan-like sulfated galactan. The polysaccharides (SPs) from I. cordata exhibited weak antitumor activity against PC-3 (prostate cancer), HeLa (cervical cancer), and HT-29 (human colon adenocarcinoma). To our knowledge, this is the first data on biological activity of the Antarctic red seaweed I. cordata.

Short communication: Quantification of carbohydrates in whey permeate products using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection

A method was developed for the characterization and quantification of the disaccharide lactose and 3 major bovine milk oligosaccharides (BMO) in dairy streams. Based on high-performance anion-exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection (HPAE-PAD), this method is advantageous because it requires minimal sample preparation and achieves good chromatographic separation of oligosaccharide isomers within 30min. The linear dynamic range and limit of detection were 0.1 to 10mg/L and 0.03 to 0.22mg/L, respectively. Mean recoveries of the BMO were excellent and ranged from 98.4 to 100.4%. Without complicated sample preparation procedures, this HPAE-PAD method measured BMO [3′-sialyllactose (3′SL), 6′-sialyllactose (6′SL), and 6′-sialyllactosamine (6′SLN)] and lactose using a single instrument, therefore increasing the accuracy of the measurement and applicability for the dairy industry. In colostrum whey permeate, 3′SL, 6′SL, and 6′SLN were 94, 29, and 46mg/L, respectively. This work is the first to demonstrate that some commercial products, currently marketed for supporting a healthy immune system, contain significant amounts of bioactive BMO and therefore, carry additional bioactivities.

HPAEC-PAD quantification of Haemophilus influenzae type b polysaccharide in upstream and downstream samples

Due to the rapidly increasing introduction of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and other conjugate vaccines worldwide during the last decade, reliable and robust analytical methods are needed for the quantitative monitoring of intermediate samples generated during fermentation (upstream processing, USP) and purification (downstream processing, DSP) of polysaccharide vaccine components. This study describes the quantitative characterization of in-process control (IPC) samples generated during the fermentation and purification of the capsular polysaccharide (CPS), polyribosyl-ribitol-phosphate (PRP), derived from Hib. Reliable quantitative methods are necessary for all stages of production; otherwise accurate process monitoring and validation is not possible. Prior to the availability of high performance anion exchange chromatography methods, this polysaccharide was predominantly quantified either with immunochemical methods, or with the colorimetric orcinol method, which shows interference from fermentation medium components and reagents used during purification. Next to an improved high performance anion exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) method, using a modified gradient elution, both the orcinol assay and high performance size exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) analyses were evaluated. For DSP samples, it was found that the correlation between the results obtained by HPAEC-PAD specific quantification of the PRP monomeric repeat unit released by alkaline hydrolysis, and those from the orcinol method was high (R2=0.8762), and that it was lower between HPAEC-PAD and HPSEC results. Additionally, HPSEC analysis of USP samples yielded surprisingly comparable results to those obtained by HPAEC-PAD. In the early part of the fermentation, medium components interfered with the different types of analysis, but quantitative HPSEC data could still be obtained, although lacking the specificity of the HPAEC-PAD method. Thus, the HPAEC-PAD method has the advantage of giving a specific response compared to the orcinol assay and HPSEC, and does not show interference from various components that can be present in intermediate and purified PRP samples.

Quantification of each serogroup polysaccharide of Neisseria meningitidis in A/C/Y/W-135-DT conjugate vaccine by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection analysis.

Invasive bacterial meningitis caused by Neisseria meningitidis can be prevented by active immunization with meningococcal polysaccharide or polysaccharide-protein conjugate vaccines. In a tetravalent A/C/Y/W-135-DT meningococcal conjugate vaccine vial, or in a final formulated bulk, accurate identification and quantification of each polysaccharide are critical in product release. Determination of sialic acid serogroups (C, W-135, and Y) unambiguously is complex since all these serogroups contribute to the sialic acid monosaccharide peaks that overlap in the high-performance anion-exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD). We report a quantification method that involves generation of monosaccharide standard plots for respective sugars mannosamine-6-phosphate, sialic acid, galactose- and glucose-derived from hydrolysis of mixtures of the four serogroups A, C, W, and Y reference polysaccharides. These plots were then used to obtain the unknown polysaccharide concentrations of A/C/Y/W-135 in vialed vaccine or from formulated final bulks. We also present our results of the HPAEC-PAD profiles on groups C, W-135, and Y polysaccharides when hydrolyzed individually and/or in mixtures to discuss the individual sialic acid peak contributions.

A reliable and rapid method for soluble sugars and RFO analysis in chickpea using HPAEC–PAD and its comparison with HPLC–RI

A high performance anion exchange chromatography (HPAEC) coupled with pulsed amperometric detection (PAD) was optimised to separate with precision, accuracy and high reproducibility soluble sugars including oligosaccharides present in pulse meal samples. The optimised method within 20min separated myo-inositol, galactinol, glucose, fructose, sucrose, raffinose, stachyose and verbascose in chickpea seed meal extracts. Gradient method of eluting solvent (sodium hydroxide) resulted in higher sensitivity and rapid detection compared to similar analytical methods. Peaks asymmetry equivalent to one and resolution value ⩾1.5 support column’s precision and accuracy for quantitative determinations of soluble sugars in complex mixtures. Intermediate precision determined as relative standard deviation (1.8–3.5%) for different soluble sugars confirms reproducibility of the optimised method. The developed method has superior sensitivity to detect even scarcely present verbascose in chickpea. It also quantifies myo-inositol and galactinol making it suitable both for RFO related genotype screening and biosynthetic studies.

Characterisation of brewpub beer carbohydrates using high performance anion exchange chromatography coupled with pulsed amperometric detection

High performance anion exchange chromatography (HPAEC) coupled with pulsed amperometric detection (PAD) was optimised in order to quantify mannose, maltose, maltotriose, maltotetraose, maltopentaose, maltohexaose and maltoheptaose content of beer. The method allows the determination of above mentioned oligosaccharides, in a single chromatographic run, without any pre-treatment. Limit of detection and limit of quantification were suitable for beer. Accuracy and repeatability were good for the entire amount considered.Once optimised HPAEC PAD for the specific matrix, the second goal of this research was to verify the possibility to discriminate beers, depending on their style. The carbohydrates content of brewpub commercial beers was very variable, ranging from 19.3 to 1469mg/L (mannose), 34.5 to 2882mg/L (maltose), 141.9 to 20731mg/L (maltotriose), 168.5 to 7650mg/L (maltotetraose), 20.1 to 2537mg/L (maltopentaose), 22.9 to 3295mg/L (maltohexaose), 8.5 to 2492mg/L (maltoeptaose), even in the same style of beer. However, the carbohydrates content was useful, jointed with other compounds amount, to discriminate different styles of beer. As a matter of fact, principal component analysis put in evidence beer differences considering some fermentation conditions and colour.

Study on LOD of Chinese Honey Adulterated with HFCS by HPAEC-PAD

In consideration of the adulterated situation and characteristics of Chinese honey market, high performance anion exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) used for detection of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in adulterated honey were further studied in this paper, Isocratic elution with optimize chromatographic conditions, the limit of detection (LOD) of HFCS in adulterated acacia honey, linden honey, date honey and citrus honey can reached 1% respectively, while performed good reproducibility and high stability. This method was simple, effective, high sensitivity, and can be widely applied to the detection of honey with HFCS.

Determination of proline–hydroxyproline dipeptide in rat urine by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography coupled with pulsed amperometric detection

A method for determination of proline-hydroxyproline dipeptide (PHP) was developed using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography-pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD). This method resulted in good separation of proline (Pro), hydroxyproline (Hyp), and PHP within 20min using a mobile phase of 1.2mM Ba(OH)2+1.5mM Ba(OAc)2. The linear dynamic ranges and their detection limits (S/N=3) were 1-100 (r(2)=0.9990-0.9999) and 0.05-0.3μM, respectively. Mean recoveries were 91.6-121.3% and 92.2-110.3% for intra- and inter-day assays, respectively. Our HPAEC-PAD method showed clear differences in the corrected PHP levels measured in urine samples from two groups of rats, sham-operated and ovariectomized, without the need for prior acid hydrolysis or sample derivatization.

Partially hydrolyzed guar gum characterization and sensitive quantification in food matrices by high performance anion exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection—Validation using accuracy profile

Interest concerning functional ingredients and especially dietary fibres has been growing in recent years. At the same time, the variety of ingredient accepted as dietary fibres and their mixing at low level in complex matrices have considerably complicated their quantitative analysis by approved AOAC methods. These reasons have led to the specific development of an innovative analytical method performed by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography (HPAEC) with pulsed amperometric detection (PAD) to detect and quantify partially hydrolyzed guar gum (PHGG) in fruit preparation and dairy matrices. The analytical methodology was divided in two steps which could be deployed separately or in conjunction. The first, consists in a complete characterization of PHGG by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) with multi-angle light scattering and refractive index detection and HPAEC–PAD to determine its physico-chemical properties and galactomannans content, and the second step is the development of a new HPAEC–PAD method for PHGG direct quantification in complex matrices (dairy product). Validation in terms of detection and quantification limits, linearity of the analytical range, average accuracy (recovery, trueness) and average uncertainty were statistically carried out with accuracy profile. Overall, this new chromatographic method has considerably improved the possibility to quantify without fractionation treatment, low level of dietary fibres emerging from specific galactomannans, in complex matrices and many foodstuffs.

Application of high-performance anion-exchange chromatography–pulsed amperometric detection for measuring carbohydrates in routine daily filter samples collected by a national network: 1. Determination of the impact of biomass burning in the upper Midwest

[1] Biomass burning is one of the major sources of organic carbon aerosols. However, there is limited information on the temporal and spatial variability for the impact of biomass burning in most regions of the United States, including the upper Midwest. In an attempt to obtain information on these variabilities, high-performance anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) was employed to measure the smoke marker levoglucosan (and various other carbohydrates) on archived daily Federal Reference Monitor (FRM) Teflon filter samples from the PM2.5 NAAQS compliance monitoring network. Levoglucosan data, along with measurements of water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC) and potassium, from the analysis of FRM samples collected at 10 sites in the upper Midwest from March 2004 through February 2005 are presented. Results suggest that WSOC contains a substantial regional component, summer levoglucosan is dependent on both horizontal and vertical transport of fire emissions, and potassium revealed no clear pattern associated with biomass burning impacts. The contribution of organic carbon due to primary biomass burning particle emissions ranged on average from about 5 to 35%, suggesting that for this study in the upper Midwest, >50% of the WSOC is from secondary organic aerosol rather than biomass burning. In a second paper the results from the measurements of the other carbohydrates that HPAEC-PAD analysis can determine are discussed to investigate their sources and trends.

Application of high-performance anion-exchange chromatography–pulsed amperometric detection for measuring carbohydrates in routine daily filter samples collected by a national network: 2. Examination of sugar alcohols/polyols, sugars, and anhydrosugars in the upper Midwest

[1] Carbohydrate measurements of ambient samples can provide insights into the biogenic fraction of the organic carbon (OC) aerosol. However, lack of measurement on a routine basis limits data analysis. In a companion paper, 1 year of archived 1-in-6 day FRM (Federal Reference Monitor) filter samples from the PM2.5 NAAQS compliance monitoring network collected at 10 sites in the upper Midwest were analyzed using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection to determine the regional impact of biomass burning. Along with levoglucosan, 13 other carbohydrates were simultaneously measured, including two more anhydrosugars (mannosan and galactosan), five sugars (arabinose, galactose, glucose, mannose, xylose), and six sugar alcohols/polyols (glycerol, methyltetrols, threitol/erythritol, xylitol, sorbitol, mannitol). This paper focuses on the results from these carbohydrates in order to investigate their sources and trends both spatially and temporally. Mannosan, galactosan, arabinose, xylose, and threitol/erythritol all correlated with levoglucosan (R2 from 0.43 to 0.97), suggesting biomass burning as their main source. Glucose and mannitol exhibited higher concentrations in summer and at more southern sites, likely due to vegetation differences at the sites. Using mannitol, the contribution of spores to OC was found to be <1%. Methyltetrols were highly correlated with water-soluble OC (R2 from 0.63 to 0.95) and in higher concentrations at more eastern sites. This spatial pattern is possibly due to these sites being downwind of the high isoprene emission zones that occur in the western part of the Midwest from oak forests in the Ozarks and spruce forests in the northern lake states.

Determination of phenylalanine in blood by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography–pulsed amperometric detection to diagnose phenylketonuria

We have developed a high-performance anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection method for the detection of phenylalanine (Phe) and diagnosis of phenylketonuria (PKU). Sample pretreatment steps were simplified without derivatization. The analyte was separated within 5 min. The detection limit (S/N = 3) for Phe was 50 pg. Linear dynamic range was 1.23–14.43 mg/dL ( r 2 = 0.9999) for a dried blood spot. The mean recoveries of Phe for intra- and inter-day assays were found to be 96.87–104.16%. This method clearly differentiated PKU-positive groups from normal groups, and proved to be a practical procedure for rapid screening and follow-up monitoring of PKU.